Texans to hit the polls for Tuesday’s Primary elections

CHRISTIAN PALMER

Published 6:00 pm, Wednesday, February 24, 2010

According to a poll conducted by the Lake Houston Sentinel Web site, 75 percent of residents between Baytown and Huffman will exercise their civic duty and vote in the Primary elections taking place Tuesday, March 2, while 25 percent will hold their votes until November.

In the primary elections, the parties planning to participate in upcoming elections hold a vote to elect which nominee will face off against opponents from other parties. At these elections, the parties often hold caucuses and conventions or other presentations to inform and persuade voters. April 13 is set aside for Primary runoff elections.

Some may believe that getting out there on the day of the Primary election is unnecessary for citizens. However, for at least one contest during this election season, the positions will be decided at the Primary because some races are uncontested.

The race for Justice of the Peace, Precinct 3, Place 2 will certainly go to a Democrat, as no Republican candidates filed to run. Voters at the Democratic primary contest will effectively choose the only candidate on the ballot come November. Those who filed for this contest include Don Coffey, Denise Graves, Dane Listi and Raymond Sanchez Jr.

Some other races have only one candidate who filed. For state comptroller only incumbent Susan Combs (R) filed. For Harris County U.S. representative, District 2, only incumbent Ted Poe (R) filed. For state representative, District 128, only incumbent Wayne Smith (R) filed. Other candidates will have to wait to find out their opponents until after the primary election.

In Texas, the date for the Primary election is March 2. To be eligible to vote during any federal or local election, one must be registered with the government at least 30 days prior to the election date, so any one wishing to vote in these primary elections must have already registered to vote prior to Feb. 1.

According to the online voter resource HarrisVotes.com, those unable to vote on Election Day still have time to make their selections by appearing at one of several early voting polling locations by Feb. 26. To do so, the voter must have a valid reason that prevents their voting on Election Day. A list of early voting locations can also be found on this Web site.

The Harris County Clerk's Office estimates that between 25 percent and 30 percent of local voters vote during these two weeks prior to Election Day.

The Web sites and documents for the Harris County Tax Office and for HCCO are available in English, Spanish and Vietnamese.

Information about the Republican party and its nominees can be found at HarrisCountyGOP.com. Information about the Democratic party and its nominees can be found at HCDP.org.